As is known, shoes allowing the practice of snowboarding can be classed in three main categories, having very different mechanical qualities.
Thus, hard boots are known, which are similar to the boots intended for the practice of downhill skiing and consist mainly of a rigid shell and a sole interacting with a binding that either consists of a front fastening and an articulated back binding, or is formed by a system with retractable lugs allowing the shoe to be fitted automatically. This type of hard boot is relatively uncomfortable for walking.
In addition, soft snowboarding boots are known, consisting essentially of a leaktight boot intended to be gripped in a binding which consists mainly of a back spoiler, allowing dynamic support, and straps which secure the boot to the binding. Dynamic support with a soft boot of this type is not optimal.
A third category of shoe is also known, combining the qualities of the two aforementioned classes, these consisting of the assembly of a flexible upper with an inner frame which is used for providing dynamic support and for securing to the board using components arranged in the central portion of the sole. In particular, this type of design forms the subject matter of document FR-A-2 733 671 of the Applicant.
Moreover, as regard, the components for interacting with the binding, a number of architectures and geometries have so far been proposed. Thus, there is a particular known geometry which is in the form of a frustroconical block interacting with sliding jaws of the binding. In addition, patent FR-A-2 738 751, discloses shoes having lateral extensions in the central portion of the sole, which are intended to allow the shoe to be secured to a transverse binding. In addition, patent WO 94/26365 discloses a shoe which, in the central portion of the sole, includes two offset lateral pins which are oriented substantially along the longitudinal axis of the shoe and are intended to interact with a specific binding. Further to this, patent FR 2 705 248 discloses a binding which is produced by means of a longitudinal pin arranged under the sole, substantially level with the arch of the foot, this pin being hooked by a jaw of the binding.
Thus, there is a wide variety of means for securing the shoe to the snowboard. The consequence of this is that a pair of shoes is dedicated to a particular snowboard having specific bindings. This presents a number of major drawbacks, namely, on the one hand for the user, the need to change shoes when he desires to change snowboard and, on the other hand for the manufacturer, the requirement of producing as many types of shoes as there are existing bindings.
The problem which the invention therefore proposes to solve is that of the compatibility of snowboarding shoes with the large number and great variety of bindings existing on the market.